


You Can Live (but without me)

by Nocturnes_L



Category: Batman: Hush (2019), DCU (Comics)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Lies, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-27
Updated: 2020-12-27
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:40:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,168
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28362552
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nocturnes_L/pseuds/Nocturnes_L
Summary: She has to give up their life so he can live. He deserves to be with someone without constantly battling his conscience about it.
Relationships: Selina Kyle & Bruce Wayne, Selina Kyle/Bruce Wayne
Comments: 5
Kudos: 8





	You Can Live (but without me)

**Author's Note:**

> This is a short Batcat one-shot that I wrote TWO YEARS AGO (holy cow). I recently discovered it amongst my many files on my old Google Drive. My writing was pretty bad and I'm sure it still is, but I wanna post it anyway :)
> 
> Tbf I kinda don't remember when this fic is supposed to take place in the DCU...? I was obsessed with Hush cuz it was a classic, so I am running with it haha

It is at that moment when she realizes she isn’t any good, for things between them anyways. 

She always ruins it, always. She knows he is trying hard to accept who she really is, the thief that runs on rooftops and he wants to love the way she is. But she just cannot ignore the disappointment that’s completely noticeable in his eyes every time she’s handed to the police, not matter how well he hides it. She knows she’s slowly breaking his heart by running on rooftops and escaping from the smallest sort of crime. Damn that man and his sense of justice. 

Or more accurately, damn herself and her addiction to crime. 

_“I know you are a good person, Selina, I know you are.”_ She remembers scoffing lightly at his rare demonstration of sincerity to her. She doesn’t even know for herself if she can truly change. He has such high hopes for her, so high that she’s never gonna reach it. 

And jokes on him for wistfully thinking that she will. 

She walks to the counter of her apartment, sighing, holding a small glass of vodka. 6:52, as it says on the clock. He’s going to come up here at 7:00. He’s always so incredibly punctual, while she’s in her pajamas with messed-up hair and a little bit drunk. Today is supposed to be the third-month anniversary of their "relationship", and she is supposed to be happy and be looking beautiful in her black dress and heels. It’s better to end it now than later, when they get too far into this and realize how things are never going to work out between them. She loves him and she knows it. That’s really why she’s letting all of this mess go. She can’t be the one fooling around with his life! She knows better. 

You do have to sacrifice something or someone at some point in your life, don’t you? 

Three knocks on the door. She glares at the clock, 6:59. 

She opens the door, Bruce Wayne, standing there, perfect as usual, with his black tux and shiny new shoes. Those icy blue eyes beam at her with a truly content grin on his face. She awes. Too bad she’s letting him go, she thinks while returning a tired smile to him. 

He notices what she’s wearing, and his grin turns into a worrying frown. How she hates that frown of his, and how she wishes his happy grin can stay with him forever, even though his life is already too dark for him to do that often. Bruce never smiles much, what a pity, she thinks, it’s a handsome smile he has. 

Finding Selina drifting away, his sharp senses are telling him something’s wrong with her. 

“Selina, is something wrong?” He rests his hand on her shoulder, causing her to startle. He sees her flinching, then cautiously puts away his hand. 

“Let’s go inside.” She gestures, closing the door behind him. He hesitantly walks into her small apartment, turns his head around to study her, as if she’s some puzzle that needs to be solved, or a problem that he can’t quite find the answer to. They sit on the sofa, Bruce remembers there’s a bundle of roses in his hands, for Selina. 

He hesitantly hands her those roses, speaks as soft as a whisper: “Selina, these are for you.” he studies her movement closely, waiting for a proper response. 

She didn’t move, she almost looks like she didn’t hear what he is saying. She neither accepts the roses nor pushes them away. She just sat there, eyes blank as if they are blind, arms unmoving as if they are made out of stone. The muscles on her cheek stay still, not allowing any emotions to leak through her hard shell of flesh. His heart began to sink. Does she know she is tormenting him, making him, the Batman, panic? 

“Remember the case with Scarecrow and Riddler? Their escape and disappearance?” Her sudden voice nearly makes him jump. Somehow he is surprised by her bringing up this topic. 

“Yes. Unfortunately.” Of course he remembers.

That night, he stands under the signal with her, veins pumped with anger and boiling blood, unnaturally silent. Tension fills the gap between him and her, she notices his clenched jaw under that cowl. She knows he is still paranoid about what Hush did, his mind undoubtedly clouded with suspicion, with disappointment, even with fear. Fear for her confirmation of what he accused her of, being responsible of their disappearance and dozens of dead bodies. 

He remembers her standing with her face turned away, eyes closed, tears broke free from the restrains of her eye lids. He remembers her back slightly humped, shoulders tremble from what he said and what he accused her. Oh, he remembers what he said. 

“I thought you understood what I was fighting for! But you don’t know what you were doing, do you? You have not considered the consequences, not even once!” His voice shakes and breaks. The next thing she knows is her claws raging from her, slashing his jaw without pity, her eyes shine with tears and fury for the false accusation he ignorantly puts on her head without further investigation. The three new cuts should slap him into his senses. He stumbles back without evading, as if a cold breeze ran through him, yanking his anger and paranoia out of his body. His fingers graze across those cuts while she watches, panting. He tries to approach her, but she shakes her head and disappears from the edge of the rooftop. Too late for that. 

She observes him sinking into deep thoughts, slightly frowning. Her mind races, trying to decide what she should say or do in the meantime. She remembers him apologizing to her later for his indeed false accusations, him kissing her on her left cheek, voice croaky and flooded with guilt. She remembers herself smiling sadly, couldn’t quite shake away the wound slashed open by his words. She remembers him noticing the melancholy in her smile, him brushing his lips on hers with fiery passion and ceaseless longing, the scent of him filling her senses, at that moment, everything was forgiven. 

“Please, tell me what’s wrong.” His demanding yet caring tone drags her out of her thoughts. She looks up and met those perfect blue eyes contemplating her with such concern and worry, it almost makes her change her mind. 

But maybe it is the vodka dashing to her brain, maybe it is everything she has been, maybe it is the overwhelming love she feels for him, maybe it is her wish of him being happy with a woman that deserves him, maybe it is just a decision not considered carefully. She takes a breath, like diving into a river without knowing what’s at the bottom. She speaks, a lie as cold as ice: “I did what you accused me of, Bruce. You were not wrong about me.”

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to leave a comment :) I would really appreciate it!


End file.
